Leaders in Medical Marijuana and the Global Alzheimer’s Markets

NetworkNewsWire Editorial Coverage: By now, the potential for cannabinoids like tetrahydrocannabinol (THC) and cannabidiol (CBD) to reduce the symptoms and even help prevent the onset of diseases such as Alzheimer’s has been fairly well-documented by a wide variety of studies (http://nnw.fm/RRjS8). The global potential for cannabis-based therapies has triggered a medical marijuana arms race, as countries like Canada, Israel and many of those in Western Europe seize the initiative and more boldly go where the U.S. federal government has feared to allow private industry to tread. Rising stars in the sector, such as phytocannabinoid combination therapy developer India Globalization Capital, Inc. (NYSE MKT: IGC) (IGC Profile), are acutely aware of this immense global potential and have begun to position themselves to secure what will no doubt be hotly-contested market share. Investors interested in medicinal marijuana and/or Alzheimer’s treatments will find themselves looking at a global landscape of key players that includes Medical Marijuana, Inc. (OTC: MJNA), the first U.S. publicly traded cannabis company, as well as Canadian pharmaceutical-grade marijuana producers Aphria, Inc. (OTCQB: APHQF) (TSX: APH), MYM Nutraceuticals, Inc. (OTCQB: MYMMF) (CNSX: MYM) and Supreme Pharmaceuticals, Inc. (OTC: SPRWF) (TSXV: FIRE).

As attitudes grow increasingly favorable to the medicinal capabilities of cannabis, the companies that excel in this new field are those focused on the development of therapies that address global market concerns, such as Alzheimer’s. According to the Alzheimer’s Association, Alzheimer’s disease and other dementias will cost the U.S. roughly $259 billion in 2017 and, by 2050, could rise to as much as $1.1 trillion (http://nnw.fm/OzoX8).

Help may be on the way, though, as India Globalization Capital, Inc. (IGC)is now on the verge of bringing a potential blockbuster treatment for Alzheimer’s to market as soon as early 2018 (http://nnw.fm/8pkAv). Through a license agreement with the University of South Florida (http://nnw.fm/Ny7N0), IGC is the exclusive licensee of the U.S. patent filing “THC as a Potential Therapeutic Agent for Alzheimer’s Disease,” putting the company on track with a unique advantage in the global Alzheimer’s drug market, which is currently valued at roughly $3.6 billion (http://nnw.fm/b6AVl).

Novel in vitro data (http://nnw.fm/wvwX7) aggregated by IGC using genetically engineered cell lines add substantial weight to the existing argument about low doses of THC addressing the link between amyloid beta peptide (Aβ plaque) buildup in the cerebral cortex/hippocampus and Alzheimer’s (http://nnw.fm/lnxQ1). Given that the dominant therapies for Alzheimer’s cannot stop or reverse disease progression, the mounting evidence that THC and CBD can stop or even reverse the symptoms of this disease (while providing neuroprotective benefits) is huge (http://nnw.fm/f8RVr).

Today’s dominant Alzheimer’s therapies, such as Allergan’s (AGN) Namenda, Daiichi Sankyo’s (DSNKY, DSKYF) Memary, Novartis’s (NVS) Exelon and the drug Aricept developed by Pfizer (PFE) and Eisai (ESALY, ESALF), may soon find themselves supplanted by disruptive new technologies based on extremely old natural substances, like cannabis, which have been in continuous human use for centuries.

Notably, while IGC’s potential is of impressive significance, the company’s market valuation of $10 million is a drop in a bucket compared to other Alzheimer’s players such as Allergan (NYSE: AGN), valued at $60+ billion; Novartis (NYSE: NVS) at $213 billion, and Pfizer (NYSE: PFE) with a market cap of over $210 billion. While IGC has considerable room to grow as investors become aware of its true value, the company offers potentially the most substantial product in the industry. If its aforementioned patent is approved, IGC will own the key therapeutic pathway by which THC interacts with the human body.

The new in vitro data from IGC extend earlier findings regarding the company’s IGC-AD1 product (Hyalolex, http://nnw.fm/Xb0f4), which showed up to 50 percent reduction in the production of the two key peptides that make up the amyloid plaques found in abundance within the brains of Alzheimer’s patients (http://nnw.fm/o5PGh). Moreover, because Alzheimer’s starts several decades before symptoms begin to exhibit, a drug like IGC-AD1, which has demonstrated an ability to decrease production/aggregation of Aβ plaque without neurotoxic effects or inebriation, could become a leading prophylactic treatment taken by millions as a way to prevent Alzheimer’s.

Building on this potential, IGC is gearing up to commercialize a non-inebriating liquid supplement version of the product for the licensed medical dispensary market (http://nnw.fm/4RgWz), which has demonstrated an ability to enhance mitochondrial function (a trigger for Alzheimer’s pathophysiology) by as much as 60 percent in vitro (http://nnw.fm/0kf0N). This readily commercialized combination therapy could give IGC significant, immediate ground game in this burgeoning retail space and help support the company’s clinical work. This one-two punch approach, with a food supplement in one hand and an FDA prophylactic/therapeutic indication in the other, is as powerful as it is solidly backed by exclusively-licensed IP.

Germany alone has nearly 83 million people, and the most common cause behind the 1.6 million-plus dementia cases in that country is Alzheimer’s (http://nnw.fm/Y1F5z). As such, the recent announcement that IGC has entered into an MOU with leading Hamburg-based medical cannabis information and services provider MediCann Handels GmbH (http://nnw.fm/ssMn9) to import and distribute IGC’s cannabinoid-based therapies to German pharmacies has been music to savvy investors’ ears. This is a serious boon for IGC, which marks the first step of many along the company’s path to commercialization and is a real sweetheart of a deal, with MediCann footing the bill for the logistics, as well as sales and marketing.

Medical Marijuana (MJNA), with a current estimated market valuation of $67 million, is also eyeing its potential in the Alzheimer’s market, with its Real Scientific Hemp Oil (“RSHO™”) products taking shape as leading CBD hemp oil solutions in several international markets. In February 2017, MJNA announced (http://nnw.fm/5B76p) that the Brazilian government authorized a doctor’s prescription for RSHO™ to treat a patient with Alzheimer’s disease.

“Treatment solutions for neurological diseases like Alzheimer’s and Parkinson’s are desperately needed because of the difficulty in developing pharmaceuticals that can pass the blood-brain barrier, a specialized system of cells that allow nutrients in the brain while preventing harmful substances from passing through,” MJNA CEO Dr. Stuart Titus stated in the press release. “Cannabinoids like CBD, however can pass through the blood-brain barrier and affect cannabinoid/other receptors in the brain and an early stage study has shown the potential benefit of cannabis and cannabinoid therapies for Alzheimer’s disease. This will lead us toward future cannabinoid remedies and research to convince the medical community of potential benefits.”

MJNA currently has three products approved for importation into Brazil, which are subsidized by the government as prescription medications for chronic pain, epilepsy, and Parkinson’s disease.

With mounting interest in the potential of cannabis-based therapies, the demand for medicinal-grade cannabis production continues to increase. Canadian medical cannabis provider Aphria (APHQF) recently completed its initial shipment of cannabis oil to Australian medical life science company Medlab Clinical (http://nnw.fm/x0nFO). Aphira will produce and supply high-yield cannabis extracts for Medlab’s upcoming, first-of-its-kind globally, human trial of its cannabis-based NanaBis™ in intractable pain among oncology patients. With product formulation and permits for the agreement already approved by both Health Canada and the Australian Therapeutic Goods Administration, investors can see why eyes are increasingly turning overseas amid the continued blossoming of the cannabis sector into a full-fledged industry, with global horizons in the ballpark of $56 billion by 2025 for just the non-recreational segment (http://nnw.fm/6Futo).

In Australia, MYM Nutraceuticals (MYMMF) is focused on acquiring Health Canada licenses to produce and sell high-end organic medicinal cannabis supplements and topical products. The company recently entered into a strategic partnership with PUF Ventures, Inc. (CSE: PUF) (FRA: PU3) (OTC: PUFXF) for the construction of a one million-square-foot greenhouse facility with large-scale manufacturing, processing and office facilities for the cultivation, production and manufacture of medical cannabis and associated products. At full scale, the Northern Rivers Project will have the capacity to produce 100,000 kilograms of high quality cannabis per year, which would be worth between C$800 million and C$1.1 billion based on current pricing metrics in the Australian cannabis marketplace (http://nnw.fm/nPNV9).

Supreme Pharmaceuticals (SPRWF) is dedicated to becoming a leading cultivator and supplier of cannabis in federally legal and regulated global markets. SPRWF is primed for access to global operators in the sector via its wholly owned 7ACRES subsidiary, with sales already going swimmingly to other Canadian players such as retail partner Aurora Cannabis (ACBFF) and medicines developer Emerald Health Therapeutics (EMHTF). The company even recently tacked on another 30,000 square feet at its (now) 342,000-square-foot hybrid greenhouse facility in Ontario (http://nnw.fm/SuWN0).

With nearly 44 million people suffering from Alzheimer’s or a related dementia worldwide and an estimated total health care cost of some $605 billion, this one vector could carry much of the existing cannabis market, if a suitable THC/CBD-based treatment is developed. Until many more U.S. states pass reform legislation or the federal government reverses its stance on the drug, it seems reasonable that market participants will continue to focus on global opportunities. As a small-cap racing alongside large-cap peers, IGC is geared up to capture its share of the medicinal marijuana and Alzheimer’s disease treatment markets, propelled by potential patent protection for its market-ready technology, and in-vitro, in-vivo clinical data showing the efficacy of its formulation.

NetworkNewsWire (NNW) is an information service that provides (1) access to our news aggregation and syndication servers, (2) NetworkNewsBreaks that summarize corporate news and information, (3) enhanced press release services, (4) social media distribution and optimization services, and (5) a full array of corporate communication solutions. As a multifaceted financial news and content distribution company with an extensive team of contributing journalists and writers, NNW is uniquely positioned to best serve private and public companies that desire to reach a wide audience of investors, consumers, journalists and the general public. NNW has an ever-growing distribution network of more than 5,000 key syndication outlets across the country. By cutting through the overload of information in today’s market, NNW brings its clients unparalleled visibility, recognition and brand awareness. NNW is where news, content and information converge.

Please see full terms of use and disclaimers on the NetworkNewsWire website applicable to all content provided by NNW, wherever published or re-published: http://NNW.fm/Disclaimer

DISCLAIMER: NetworkNewsWire (NNW) is the source of the Article and content set forth above. References to any issuer other than the profiled issuer are intended solely to identify industry participants and do not constitute an endorsement of any issuer and do not constitute a comparison to the profiled issuer. The commentary, views and opinions expressed in this release by NNW are solely those of NNW. Readers of this Article and content agree that they cannot and will not seek to hold liable NNW for any investment decisions by their readers or subscribers. NNW is a news dissemination and financial marketing solutions provider and are NOT registered broker-dealers/analysts/investment advisers, hold no investment licenses and may NOT sell, offer to sell or offer to buy any security.

The Article and content related to the profiled company represent the personal and subjective views of the Author, and are subject to change at any time without notice. The information provided in the Article and the content has been obtained from sources which the Author believes to be reliable. However, the Author has not independently verified or otherwise investigated all such information. None of the Author, NNW, or any of their respective affiliates, guarantee the accuracy or completeness of any such information. This Article and content are not, and should not be regarded as investment advice or as a recommendation regarding any particular security or course of action; readers are strongly urged to speak with their own investment advisor and review all of the profiled issuer’s filings made with the Securities and Exchange Commission before making any investment decisions and should understand the risks associated with an investment in the profiled issuer’s securities, including, but not limited to, the complete loss of your investment.

NNW HOLDS NO SHARES OF ANY COMPANY NAMED IN THIS RELEASE.

This release contains “forward-looking statements” within the meaning of Section 27A of the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and Section 21E the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended and such forward-looking statements are made pursuant to the safe harbor provisions of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995. “Forward-looking statements” describe future expectations, plans, results, or strategies and are generally preceded by words such as “may”, “future”, “plan” or “planned”, “will” or “should”, “expected,” “anticipates”, “draft”, “eventually” or “projected”. You are cautioned that such statements are subject to a multitude of risks and uncertainties that could cause future circumstances, events, or results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements, including the risks that actual results may differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements as a result of various factors, and other risks identified in a company’s annual report on Form 10-K or 10-KSB and other filings made by such company with the Securities and Exchange Commission. You should consider these factors in evaluating the forward-looking statements included herein, and not place undue reliance on such statements. The forward-looking statements in this release are made as of the date hereof and NNW undertakes no obligation to update such statements.